Henry Charles left his farm to fight in the Civil War

Courtesy of Donald M. WisnoskiCivil War veteran Henry Charles' photo was taken around the turn of the century on the Peterboro village green during a group shot of veterans from the Grand Army of the Republic.

Henry Charles, an 18-year-old farmer living in Peterboro, enlisted June 15, 1863, at Readville, Mass. He joined the 55th Massachusetts Volunteers, a unit formed from the overflow of the sister regiment, the 54th Massachusetts.

On July 21, 1863, the 55th left for the Carolinas. The 55th took part in numerous battles. The action included Morris Island, Aug. 9 – Sept. 5, 1863; operations around Charleston and Fort Sumter, Sept. 17 – Oct. 25 1863; campaigning in Florida, February – April 1864; Honey Hill, S.C., Nov. 30, 1864; and numerous expeditions and skirmishes in South Carolina until the Civil War’s end.

On Aug. 29, 1865, the 55th was mustered out at Orangeburg, S.C. The regiment was officially discharged at Boston on Sept. 23, 1865.

Charles returned to his native Madison County after the war. On April 28, 1868, he married Sarah Davis. By 1889, the Charles family was living in Rome, N.Y., where Charles worked as a laborer. Charles died May 27, 1922. Like a number of Madison County’s black veterans of the Civil War, he was buried at Peterboro Cemetery.

This story was adapted from "The Opportunity Is at Hand," a book by Donald M. Wisnoski that chronicles the stories of black soldiers from Oneida County and nearby communities in the Civil War. Today's story is part of The Post-Standard's 2012 observance of Black History Month. This year coincides with the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. The Post-Standard observes the month with accounts of Central New York's African-Americans who lived in the Civil War era, especially those who risked their lives as abolitionists and those who fought for the Union.

You can explore Post-Standard reporting from previous years by searching for Black History. Or you can follow these links for a sampling of related stories:
» "Stops on the Road to Freedom," the sites and people in Central New York that played a significant role in the abolitionist movement and the Underground Railroad.
» "On the Front Lines of History," the story of local blacks' military service.
» "Witnesses: Scars of a Southern Childhood," how Syracusans who grew up in the American South experienced legal segregation before the great changes brought about by the Civil Rights movement a century after the Civil War.